Draft appliance for railway-vehicles.



H. 0. BUHOUP.

DRAFT APPLIANCE FOR RAILWAY VEHICLES.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 25, I915.

Patented Mar. 14, 1916 2 SHEETS-SHEET I if? i E awn auto;

5;. mummy THE COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH 90., WASHINGTON, D. C-

H. C. BUHOUP. DRAFT APPLIANCE FOR RAILWAY VEHICLES.

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1,175,23 1. Patented Mar. 14, 1916. 2 ssssssssssss 2. v

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. v

HARRY C. BUHOUP, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS COMBANY, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVA 'ASSIGNOR TO THE MCCONWAY & TQRLEY NIA, -A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

DRAFT APPLIANCE Fort RAILWAY-VEHICLES.

Application filed June 25, 1915. Serial N 0. 36,233.

To all whom it may concern:

I Be it known that I, HARRY G. BUHOUP, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Draft Appliances for Railway-Vehicles; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to the construction of draft appliances for railway vehicles and more particularly to the means for automatically restoring the coupler to its nor- 'mal position in the longitudinal itXlSOf the economy of maintenance of the device. This object, generally stated, is accomplished-by mounting upon the stem of the coupler a detachably connected frame which'involves in its construction counterpart members having interlocking engagement, the spring mechanism for controlling the lateral movements of the coupler as a whole being .car-

riedby said frame. When the coupler head is pivotally mounted on the coupler stem,

'as-is the case in the form of my invention illustrated in the drawings, the frame is preferably yieldingly mounted on the stem so as to serve as a means for centralizing the head with respect to said stem.

In the drawings illustrating the preferred l'orm-of my invention, the scope whereof is. pointed out in the claims, Figure 1 is a plan view of mechanism embodying my invention, a- =portion of the stem of the coupler be- *ing broken away and a portion of the head of the coupler being shown in section. Fig.

Q'is aside elevation of the device illustrated.

in Fig. 1. Fig.3 is a vertical, longitudinal section of'the principal portion of the mechanism shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Fig. at is a section on the line 44, Fig. 1, the spring for yieldingly supporting the slidable-frame being" omitted. Fig. 5 is a section on the y line 5.5.,'Fig. 1, looking toward the coupler head. Fig. 6 is a section on the line 6+6,

Specification of Letters Patent.

head: and 2 the parts arepivotally connected by means of a zplv'ot pin 3 which passes through corre-V Patented Mar. 14, 1916.

F ig.-3,' also looking toward the coupler head. Flg. 7 is a perspective view of one of the counterpart members of the slidable frame; aridFig. 8 is a perspective View of the spring-seat member by which the innerends of the-counterpart members of the frame Y aredetach'ably connected.

Infthe"'drawings, 1 indicates the coupler stem of the coupler. -These sponding apertures in the head and stem. The coupler stem 2 is preferably of a wellknown type, being fashioned with an upper plate orbranch 4 and a similar lower plate or branch 4, andbeing provided atit-s rear end withan opening 5 which is adaptedto receive 'the usual tail-pin (not shown) whereby the coupler may be pivotally connected tothe-railway vehicle through yielding draft rigging devices. The stem 2 is also preferably provided'near-its rear end with a laterally 'flanged filler or spacing. -member 6 which is'riveted' between the plates lof'the'stem and serves as a seat for retaining in position the longitudinally dis- -posed'spring'7 by which the coupler head is returned to normal position.

Slidably mounted between the bars or plates' of the stem is a frame which car '-ries' spring-'cups or followers 8 that, respectively, 'project outwardly beyond the Sides ofthe coupler stem 2 in opposite directions sufficiently far to enable them to normally engage-stationary abutments carried by the car, for example, the carry-iron or the draftsills. These spring-cups, which are provided at: their inner ends with suitable -means, such asithe flanges 9, for engaging theslidable' frame-to limit the extent of sep-' waration of'the said spring-cups, are normally held in a position of maximum separation by means of a transversely extending spring 10. AA pin" or bar 11 may be loosely inserted within the spring 10 for the well-known purpose of preventing the latter from being "injured byhbeing compressed solid.

'Thefmode of operation of the spring-cups 'or 'followe-rs' 8 and the interposed spring-1O in centering thecoupler is this: When the coupler stem 2 is displaced laterally in either? directionfrom its normal position in I'the center :of'the' railway'vehicle one ofthe spring-cups Samovesdaterally with it, being 'carriedalong" by reason of the-engagement 1 of its flanges 9 with the slidable frame that is mounted upon the stem. The other spring-cup, being in contact with a stationary part of the'car, is prevented fromretreating and the spring-cups thus approach each other and, consequently, compress the spring 10 between them. hen the force causing the lateral displacement of the coupier ceases to act, the expansion of the spring 10 restores the parts to normal posi tion, thus returning the coupler to. the center of the vehicle.

The frame upon which the spring-cups 8 are mounted involves in its construction detachably connected, counterpart members 12 which interlcckingly engage each other so as to enable them to slide back and forth together on the coupler stem 2. 1f the springscups 8 are employed, as it is preferred to do when the coupler stemandhead are to be centered as a whole, each of the counterpart members 12 is provided. intermediate of its ends with an opening 13 of suitable form to permit the corresponding springcup to project and reciprocate therethrough. The inner faces or shoulders 14; and 15 (see Figs. 3. 5 and 7) of each member 12 adjacent to the sides of the apertures 13 therein form stops which are adapted to engage the flanges 9 at the respective bases of the spring-cups. to thereby limit the outward movement of said spring-cups. Above and below the opening 13 each frame member 12 is preferably fashioned. with inwardly projecting, longitudinally extending flanges. 16 and 17, respectively, which not only afford extended bearing and guiding surfaces for the upper and lower faces'of the spring-cups 8, but also, as will be readily appreciated from an inspection of Fig. 5 of the drawings, serve to retain the members '12 in proper vertical relation with the plates 4 of the coupler stem 2 while permitting them to freely slide or reciprocate longitudinally between said plates. To prevent lateral displacement of the slidable frame with respect to the stem of the coupler on which it is mounted, the side walls of each of the counterpart members 12 are preferably extended vertically a sufiicient distance to engagingly overlap the outer edges of the plates 4 of the coupler stem, as indicated at 18 and best seen in Figs. l, 5 and 6.

Each of the counterpart frame members '12 is-provided on its inner side toward the end which engages the coupler head with a laterally extending projection 19 and with a transversely extending shoulder 20, said projection and said shoulder being so disposed that one is above and the other below the longitudinal axis of the member 12, or,-in other words, on opposite sides of said axis. When the counterpart members 12 are brought into assembled relation they are thus interlocked against relative movement in a longitudinal direction. as the projection 19 on one of the members engages the corresponding transversely extending shoulder 20 on the other member 12.- As shown in the. drawings, it is preferred to make the projecting members 19 of hook-like form so that they may overlap the rivet 21 and. spacing sleeve 22 by which the outer ends of the plates l of the coupler stem are connected in spaced relation. Such manner of fashioning the projections 19 eliminates the possibility of injury to the said rivet and sleeve 1 which, if the parts fittedtogether with 1111-2 usual looseness, might be caused by the impact of said projections against the sleeve 22 upon a. rearward movement of the counterpart members 12. Moreover, by having the projections 20 overlap the rivet 21 and the spacing sleeve 22 in all operative positions of the parts, the said sleeve and rivet serve as a means for maintaining the counterpart members 12 at their forward ends in assembled relation with the stem of the coupler. The overlapping of the rivet '21 and sleeve 22 by the projections 19 of the coun terpart members, though desirable, is in no wise essential, as the forward ends 23 (see Fig. 1) of the members 12 extend into a tapering, forwardly contracting pocket 24in the coupler head 1 and abut at their outer 1 ends against corresponding vertically ex-v tending shoulders 25 on the couplerhead. By this means the coupler head 1, when the parts are in assembled position, serves to prevent the outer ends of: the frame members 12 from separating.

The rear end of each counterpart member 12 is preferably provided with an inwardly. extending projection .or lug 26 which it is desirable to make of sutiicient length toengage the end of the similarlug 26 onthe other counterpart frame member, the members 12 being thus sustained in proper spaced relation at their rear ends. Projectingrearwardly from the rear end of each member 12 is a lug 27, the end of said'lugbeing, as shown, preferably located near the outer face of the member 12 so that it, to-! gether ith the corresponding lug on; the counterpart member, may assist in retaining the forward end of'the spring -7 in assembled position. Thelugs 27 on the members 12, respectively extend through, .appropri-' ately formed apertures'28 in a spring seat 29 upon which the forward end of the spring 7 bears. The two counterpart members 12. of the frame are thus detachably connected at their rear ends by thespring-seat, each of these three members engaging the two others.

To insure that thespring-seat .29 shall bear upon both counterpart members without requiring any machining or careful fitting of the parts. it is preferred to form the lugs 26 so that their rear. faces adjacent to their inner ends shall not come in contact with the spring seat 29 but shall bespaced away therefrom, as indicated at the space 30 in Fig. 1. The spring seat 29, thus bearing upon the counterpart members 12 near their outer sides only, may therefore tilt until it is firmly seated upon both, whereas if the bearing face for the spring-seat on each member 12 extended to the center of the frame the entire strain due to the compression of the spring 7 would be received by one only of the counterpart members, should one of them extend rearwardly beyond the other, since the spring-seat 29 could not then tilt so as to transmit the strain to both of the counterpart members. Moreover, the space 30, thus provided between the spring-seat 29 and the members 12 which it links together, affords an opportunitw for the introduction of a bar or other instrument with which to disengage the member 29 from the members 12 in the event, as a result of service, it should ever become difficult to remove.

If desired the counterpart members 12,0f the slidable frame may be connected at their forward ends by detachable means, such as a splitkey 31 which may be conveniently made of flat metal. WVhen such means are employed it is preferred to form an appropriately shaped groove or way 32 in the under side of each of the interlocking projections 19 of the frame members 12, the transversely disposed key 31 or connecting means extending through said ways. As most clearly shown in Fig. 6, the outer faces of each of the members 12 may be provided with depressions or countersunk seats 33 for the reception and protection of the head or bent ends of the key 31.

It will be readily understood that when the head 1 of the coupler rotates on the stem 2 in either direction from its normal or centralized position one or the other of the shoulders 25 on the coupler head, depending upon the direction in which the head turns, acts upon the contacting end of one of the counterpart members 12 and thus causes the entire frame of which such member 12 is a part to slide rearwardly upon the coupler stem 2. The spring 7 is thereby compressed. Upon the expansion of this spring the frame is restored to its normal position, thus rotating the coupler head 1 to a centralized position with respect to said stem.

While the frame members 12 have been referred to herein as counterpart members, and while it is advantageous to make them alike, yet, as will appear from the following claims, frame members which are counterparts are not essential to certain novel structural features and combinations of elements embodied in my invention.

1 claim:

1. The combination with a car coupler having a head and stem, of a frame mounted upon. said stem, and yielding means carried said frame involving a plurality of members provided with interlocking means for preventing relative movement of said frame members in the direction of length of said coupler stem and also involving detachable means for preventing the lateral separation of said frame members. I

3. The combination with a car coupler having a head and stem, of a frame mounted upon said stem, and yielding means carried by said frame for centralizing said coupler, said frame involving a plurality of separable frame members and means for detachably connecting said separable frame mem bers, and said frame members and said con nectirig means being adapted to be disconnected by a relative movement in the direction of length of the coupler. v

43. The combination with a car coupler having a stem and a head pivotally mounted on said stem, of a frame slidably mounted upon said stem and engaging said coupler head, and yielding means interposed between said frame and said stem, said frame involving interlocked separable counterpart members.

5. The combination with a car coupler having a stem and a head pivotally mounted on said stem, of a frame slidably mounted upon said stem, and a spring interposed between said frame and stem, said frame involving separable members and means for connecting said separable members, said means constituting a seat for said spring.

6. The combination with a car coupler having a head and stem, of a frame mounted upon said stem, and yielding means carried by said frame for centralizing said coupler, said frame involving separable frame members each of which is provided with a transversely extending projection, said projections when assembled being adapted to extend across the longitudinal axis of said stem and at least one of said projections be ing adapted to engage the opposed frame member to thereby space said frame members apart.

7. The combination with a coupler stem having upper and lower members which are connected toward their forward ends by vertically extending means, of a coupler head pivotally mounted on said stem, a frame engaging said head and shdably mounted on said stem, and yielding means interposed between said frame and stem, said frame in volving separable counterpart members having projecting portions which overlap the said vertically extending means for connect ing the upper and lower members of said stem.

8. The combination with a car coupler having a stem and a head pivotally mounted on said stem, of a frame slidably mounted on said stem and engaging said coupler head, and spring means interposed between said frame and stem, said frame involving separable frame members and a member through which said separable members project and by which they are connected, said last named member constituting a seat for said spring means.

9. The combination with a car coupler having a stem and a head pivotally mounted on said stem, of a frame slidably mounted on said stem, a spring interposed between said frame and said stem and extending longitudinally ith respect to said stem, laterally projecting spring-cups mounted on said frame so as to reciprocate transversely with respect thereto, and a spring operatively interposed between said spring 'cups, said frame involving in its construction three detachably connected members each of which engages the others, and also involving detachable means for connecting two of said frame members toward their forward ends.

10. The combination with a coupler having a stem and a head plvotally mounted on said stem, of a frame slidably mounted; on said stem, and a sprlngvlnterposed 'between said frame and said stem, said frame frame involving a plurality of separable,

members and transversely extending means for connecting said frame members, each of said frame members being provided with a transversely extending projection having on its under surface a groove to receive said.

connecting means, and said projections be:

ing disposed in overlapping relation when the parts are in assembled position.

12-. The combination with a car coupler having a head and stem, of a fJTQIUBTGOTQIO- catingly mounted on said stem, and yield.

ing means carried by said frame for centralizing said coupler, said frame involving separable members having overlapping projections, and said stem being provided with means for engaging the said projectionsto thereby prevent lateral separation of Bald:

frame members.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

HARRY O. BUHOUR' Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I). G. 

